1.05.2006

Poor Sick Baby

Mali has been hit with a bad bad cold. We have been up the last two nights with her, mostly because she just can't get comfortable and so wakes up every 20 minutes or so and needs to latch on to her mommy-pacifier again. Or sometimes rearrange herself without unlatching in the first place. To get an idea of how it feels to do this dance with her all night long, have someone grab your nipple hard enough and deep enough so that they won't be able to let go easily, and then have them do the Electric Slide. Do this every half hour.

Truly, though, I am glad that she hasn't let me wean her yet. Otherwise, I don't know how I'd be able to keep her hydrated, since she doesn't want to eat or drink anything else. She has the most horrible cold I've ever seen in a baby without pneumonia or RSV or an ear infection (the doctor checked her out yesterday and pronounced her unlucky but also not in imminent danger of hospitalization, which is my constant fear). She has a deep, hacking cough; is breathing rapidly and with effort (but is only wheezing intermittently); has a marathon-style runny nose (now turning green), red, swollen eyes and face, and an undulating fever. I'm pretty sure her throat is sore, too.

The doctor sent us home with a1buterol for Just In Case, and recommendations for infant decongestant and pain relievers. I find it hard to believe we're supposed to use all three at once, and so have only used the decongestant a couple of times. Even that with trepidation. It seemed to really help, though. That and shower steam treatments.

I also am leery of bombing her with meds because Leelo went through a similar horrible illness at the same age (a GI bug that finally put him in the hospital for rehydration), and we did use the full range of artillery on him. That was around the time he turned from sweet giggly baby to stone-faced baby. So I am paranoid.

Thirteen months is generally not a lucky age for our kids. It is the age when Iz had her first febrile seizure, and landed in the ER with half her body paralyzed (the paralysis only lasted an hour, but you can imagine how long that hour felt).

I am hoping Mali feels better today (shockingly, she is now asleep without being attached to me) as I've my first haircut since March scheduled this afternoon in the city, and my daughters and I are supposed to have dinner with Godfather M at his restaurant afterwards. I am selfishly hoping that I can at least get my mop topped.

Humorous/nasty aside to the sleeplessness of the past two nights: Pat our sole remaining cat keeps bringing ticks into the house. First time in his four years as a free-range cat so it must be a banner tick year. Seymour and I admitted to each other the morning after our first sleepless night that it wasn't just the baby that kept us awake; it was freaking out over every little twinge and itch, figuring that it was a tick. Ewww. Thankfully no human tick attacks yet.

Leelo 13 mos (left) and 15 mos (right):



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